Mi Tio

I actually wrote about Mi Tio a while ago (over 4 years ago now), but recently returned to see if it was still worth all the fond memories I have of this place.  As I mention in that post, I’ve been going to this place since my father was still alive.  It used to be a very small, hole-in-the-wall, family oriented joint; it doesn’t seem to have changed much from that save the ‘hole-in-the-wall’ description, as it’s expanded quite a bit in the past 10+ years and looks almost fancy.  Almost.  In any case, the prices have changed only slightly… 

Spicy chimichurri on the left, and regular chimichurri on the right.  Back in the day, going here for dinner with my family, we’d easily finish the whole non-spicy one (slathering it on the bread, on the steak, on everything in sight; it was that good) and have to ask for another one.  And yes, we’d reek of garlic for hours afterwards… good times, good times.  Since then, I’ve managed to make my own version that is pretty good.  On this occasion, I actually found it unnecessary for most of the food… 

We opted to start off with an order of ‘special onion rings’ – which were really damn tasty.  The batter was perfect except that it kept sliding off the onion rings… and the ‘chipotle’ dipping sauce was only marginally spicy, which was a nice boost to the onion rings.  Love.  Would order again. 

Salada de lengua, or tongue salad.  I was expecting thin slices of tongue, but this was a nice change: thick chunks, which had been pickled or marinated in something such that the texture was completely unlike tongue as I know it (as a cold cut, or as a dish my mother occasionally made, which was chewy and super savory).  This had the sharp tang of a pickled meat, and was quite tasty, but the platter was way huge for me to eat too much lest I ruin my appetite for my upcoming main course.  My buddy happily ate the rest of it, citing surprise equal to mine over the texture and taste. 

My “Russian” potato salad (I’m still not sure why they call it that) was a bit too much mayo this time around; almost like mashed potatoes made with mayo instead of butter and cream, which kind of threw my taste buds out of wack.  However, it was a good foil with my main course, which was actually a touch too salty. 

My full skirt steak!  This was really well-flavored/seasoned, which is why I wound up not using too much chimichurri, despite my love for it; the steak was seasoned (marinated?) exactly perfectly such that it needed no more accompaniment.  When I added a bit of chimichurri solely because I love the stuff, it was way too salty altogether so I had to abandon the chimichurri.  I can’t say this is a bad thing, but I would have liked it if I could use the chimichurri liberally like I usually do!

My dining companion opted for the mixed grill, which came with blood sausage (that had exploded), sausage, intestines, short ribs, and sweetbreads.  I tried a bit of the sweetbreads, hoping against hope that I’d finally find a place that made them right again.  I was super happy when these turned out to be quite food – the last two places I’ve had sweetbreads – one of them a Michelin-starred establishment! – both were chalky.  T’was not the case here; these were really quite delicious, and I will be back to get my fix of sweetbreads sooner than later, for a very reasonable price!  The entire platter (minus the intestines, which were a touch too chewy) was cleaned, so I presume it was good. 

Along with the mixed grill, roasted potato was ordered.  They were OK. 

Yvo says: The highlight of the night for me was discovering that the skirt steak was still just as good as – if not even better – than I remember.  The prices have gone up, yes – my complete skirt steak (with one side) was $27.95 – but I still feel it was pretty worth it, all things considered.  Very tasty.  I was also excited about the appetizers being so good, and the sweetbreads being good as well.  I need to return this to a regular rotation in my life!  Nommyness!
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